Portable necktie rack



Jan. 18, 1949. R. E. DODGE 2,459,417

PORTABLENEGKTIE RACK Filed Feb. 28, 1947 II II Z2 /9 INVENTOR.

RALPH E. 00065,

Patented Jan. 18, 1949 .UNITEDI STATES PATENT, OFFICE Ralph a. Dodge, Takoma Park, Md. Application February 28, 1947, Serial No. 731,594

3 Claims. (Cl. 21189) This invention relates to portable racks for suspending wearing apparel and the like from rods in clothes closets, edges of shelves, and the like, and in particular, a wheel with radially extending fingers with spring clamps on theupper surfaces thereof and a supporting bracket with a clip at one end by which it may be resiliently held over a rod, edge of a shelf, or the like, and an arcuate holding element at the other end with a longitudinally extending slot in which the wheel may be supported in different positions.

Various types of supportingdevices havebeen provided particularly for holding neckties and the like, and whereas these are adapted to be attached to the inner surfaces of doors, under surfaces of shelves, and other devices, they are not. universal, wherein the device may be supported from a horizontally positioned shelf, verticalqelement, or rod. With this thought in mind, the necktie rack of thisinvention contemplates a supporting element that is freely supported in a slot in a bracket wherein it may.

readily be shifted from one position to another, so that it may be supported in a horizontal position regardless of the position of the element from which the device is suspended.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a portable necktie rack that is self-supporting, and which is provided with a supporting element by which it may be supported from devices of different shapes and in different positions.

The usual type of necktie rack is attached to a door, wall surface, or the like, wherein it protrudes from the door or surface, and this is objectionable because the neckties or rack interfere with removing and replacing garments and the like from or in a closet in which the rack is positioned. To overcome this objection, the necktie rack of this invention includes a selfsupporting bracket by which the necktie-holding element may be suspended under a shelf either from the shelf or from a garment-supporting rod under the shelf.

The object of this invention is, therefore, to provide means for suspending necktie-holding elements from a clip that may be placed over the edge of a shelf, wherein the necktie-holding element may be slid along an arcuate surface to maintain a horizontal position regardless of the position of the supporting clip.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rack for holding neckties and the like, wherein the neckties are suspended from radially extending fingers of a wheel and the wheel is rotatably i z 7. supported, wherein all ties on the rack are readily accessible.

Another object of the invention is to provide a necktie-holding rackhaving radially extending fingers, wherein each necktie is individually held by a spring-clamping element.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rack for holding neckties and the like that may be supported in different positions without screws, bolts, orthe like. l

Afurther object of the invention is to provide a unique portable rack for holding neckties and the like including a rotatable wheel with radially extending fingers, which is of a simple and economical construction.

With these andother objects in view, th invention embodies a wheel with radially extending necktie-holding fingers, spring clips positioned on the upper surfaces of. the fingers, a vertically positioned .post having a shouldered surface upon which the wheel is rotatably mounted, spaced outwardly. extending arms at the upper end of the post, and a bracket having a substantially U-shaped clip at one end with the other end formed to provide an arcuate surface with a longitudinally extending slot therein in which the upper end of the post is slidably mounted.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description taken in connection with the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is aplan View of the portable necktie rack showing the parts assembled.

Figure 2 is a view showing a side elevation of the rack with the supporting bracket thereof 'positioned on the edge of a shelf or the like.

Figure 3 is a similar view showing the supporting bracket in the position of suspending the rack from a rod with the sides of the necktieholding elements broken away,

Figure 4 is a vertical section through the necktie rack and vertically positioned supporting post with parts of the bracket omitted.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate corresponding parts, the necktie rack of this invention includes a wheel H] with outwardly extending fingers l l, a post 12, and a bracket l3.

The wheel [0, with the fingers I I, is preferably formed of plastic, although it may be made of any suitable material, and, in the design shown, a comparatively thin disc I4 is positioned on the upper surface with springy radially extending fingers [5, as illustrated in Figure 4, wherein neckties placed on the fingers II are resiliently held under the spring fingers l5. In the intermediate portion of the disc l4 are openings l6 into which projections I! of the wheel l extend to locate the disc with the spring fingers centered on the radially extending fingers H.

The wheel [0 is rotatably mounted on a hearing surface I8 of the post 12 through an opening I9 in the wheel, and at the end of the bearing surface I8 is a shoulder 20, wherein with the thickness of the wheel and disc l4 less than the length of the bearing surface l8, it will be impossible to grip the Wheel to prevent turning thereof. The wheel is held in place by a washer 2i, and the washer is held by a countersunk head screw 22, which is threaded into a socket 23 in the post.

The head of the post [2 is in the form of a laterally extending bar 24 with the ends thereof projecting at each side and below the head 24" isa bar 25 that extends through a slot 26 inthe post. By these elements the post is slidably held in a longitudinally extending slot 21 in the arcuate end 2a of the bracket t3, theslot 21'- extending from the end of the bracket, as indicated by the dotted line 29 to the dotted line 30- spaced from the end of the arcuate section28.

The intermediate section of the bracket I3 is formed with a flatbargand at the opposite end is a clip 31 by which the bracket may be supported on the edge of a shelf, as indicated by the dotted line 32, or suspended from a rod, as indicated by the numeral 33. The end of the clip 3| may also be provided with asocket 34 having a relatively narrow slot 35 extending upward therefrom through which the bracket may be suspended from the-head of a screw or the like. 7

With the portable necktie rack of this invention formed in this manner, it will" be noted that the" bracket may beused in the horizontal position, as shown in Figure 2, wherein the wheel Hi may be suspended in a horizontal position by sliding the upper end of the post l2 downward through the slot in the arcuate member 28; and when it is desired to suspend the rack from a rod, as shown in Figure 3, the upper end of the post may be slid through the slot 21 to the position shown in Figure 3, wherein the wheel ill will also bein a horizontal position. It will also be noted that the post l2 maybe located at any position along the arcuate section 28, so that the wheel it maybe suspended in a horizontal position, reggrdless of the position of the supporting bracket I The elements of the tie rack are disclosed and described as formed of plastic, and it will be understood that any suitable material may be used, and the material may be of any color or any combination of colors. It will also be understood that other modifications may be made in the design and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a portable necktie rack, the combination, which comprises a wheel with radially extending necktie-holding fingers, individual spring clamps on the upper surface of each of said fingers, a vertically disposed centrally positioned post extending upward from the upper surface of the wheel, means rotatably mounting the wheel on the post, a bracket with a spring clip at one end and a slotted arcuate element at the other end, and means comprising projections on the sides of the post slidably mounting said post retainably in the slot of said arcuate element.

2; In a portable rack for holding neckties and the like, a bracket having a straight member with a resilient clip at one end and with the other end extending in adirection opposite to that of the clip and having a longitudinal slot therein, a post slidably mounted in said slot, a wheel with radially extending fingers, means rotatably mountingthe wheel onthe lower end of the post, and spring fingers on the upper surfacesof the radially extending fingers of the wheel.

3'. In a portable rack for holding" neck-ties and" the like; the combination, which comprises a bracket having a relatively straight fiat section- With aspring clip at one end and with an arcuate element extending from the opposite end from-the side opposite to that on which the spring clip is positioned, said arcuate element having a longitudinally extending slot, at post with laterally extending projections slidably mounted in the slot,

said post'having .a reduced bearing element at the lower end with ashoulder at the upper end of the bearing element, a-wheel with radially extending fingers rotatably' mounted on said'bea-ringelementof the post,--awasher positioned on the under surface of the wheel, a screw extending through the washer threaded into the lower end of the post, and a disc with outwardly extendingspring fingers positioned on the radially extending fingers of the wheel. a V I RALPH E2 DODGE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Great Britain Mar. 25', 1926 

